“Effective for travel from July 1, 2014, the number of Qantas points and status credits you earn will change when you fly with Qantas and Jetstar Airlines,” the email said.

Read more about the changes on the Qantas website.

“Put simply, these changes will mean that you’ll earn more Qantas points and status credits when you choose more flexible fares.

“At the same time, we’re reducing the Qantas points you’ll earn on our lower fares to reflect your spend.”

The email pledged that the changes would not impact on members’ current points balance. Last month, Qantas announced it would shed 5000 staff, cut some routes and put off some aircraft purchases after posting a six-month loss of $252 million.

But a spokesman for the carrier last night denied the changes to the frequent flyer scheme were affected by that announcement.

“We do make tweaks to the program from time to time, and these changes are just part of that,” he said.

Just this month Qantas announced 5000 job cuts in the biggest shake up of its operations since it floated two decades ago. This latest change is set to only add to customer resentment and create another publicity headache for our struggling national airline.